Ashiya Air Field 芦屋飛行場 Ashiya Hikōjō | |||||||||||
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 Aerial Photograph of Ashiya Air Field | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||
| Operator | Japan Air Self-Defense Force | ||||||||||
| Location | Ashiya, Japan | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 98 ft / 30 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 33°52′53″N130°39′06″E / 33.88139°N 130.65167°E /33.88139; 130.65167 | ||||||||||
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  RJFA Location in Japan | |||||||||||
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Ashiya Air Field (芦屋飛行場,Ashiya Hikōjō) (ICAO:RJFA) is a military airdrome of theJapan Air Self-Defense ForceAshiya Airbase (芦屋基地,Ashiya Kitchi). It is located 0.5 NM (0.93 km; 0.58 mi) north[1] ofAshiya in theFukuoka Prefecture,Japan.
Ashiya Airfield was established as aJapanese Army Air Force facility in 1944 and was used primarily as a defensive airfield, launching (Nakajima Ki-84) fighter interceptors against attacking USAAFB-29 Superfortress bombers.[citation needed]
Taken over in October 1945 by the occupying American forces, it was turned into a salvage/scrapping facility by theUSAAF 92d Air Service Squadron to destroy former Japanese military aircraft and other equipment. Attacked on several occasions during the war, it was repaired forFifth Air Force use as an occupation facility. The 85th Airdrome Squadron assumed control of the station on 3 April 1946, with Headquarters,315th Bombardment Wing moving into the facility on 20 May.
On 20 May 1946, the airfield was reactivated for operational use by the then-U.S. Army Air Forces, with the8th Fighter Group moving to Ashiya fromFukuoka Airfield, operatingP-51D Mustangs. During the postwar Occupation Era, a series of U.S. Army Air Forces and laterU.S. Air Force units were assigned:
With the eruption of theKorean War in June 1950, combat missions over South Korea were flown from Ashiya by the USAF's35th and18th Fighter Groups, with first-generationF-80 Shooting Star jet fighters. In July, the 35th moved to Pohang Airfield (K-3), South Korea, being replaced by the 18th. WhenPusan East (K-9) Air Base was ready in September, the group also moved to the forward base.
The comparatively short runway at the airfield was not well-suited for jet fighter operations, and the distance from the combat areas stretched the endurance of the early tactical jets. When the 18th Fighter Group moved out in September 1950, Ashiya became a transport base, withC-54 Skymaster andC-119 Flying Boxcars operated from the airfield. Both during the Korean War and in its aftermath, a series ofFar East Air Force troop carrier groups were assigned:
From 1952 to 1957, the3d Air Rescue Group's39th Air Rescue Squadron also operated USAFAir Rescue ServiceSC-47 Skytrain land-based aircraft,SA-16 Albatross amphibious aircraft, andSH-19 Chickasaw helicopters from Ashiya AB in a search and rescue role. This was chronicled in the 1959 fiction novel byElliott Arnold entitledFlight from Ashiya and the 1964 film of the same name.
In 1960, the United States closed Ashiya Air Base and returned to the Japanese government, citing the need for additional USAF forces in Europe and budget restrictions.
Ashiya Airfield provides pilotflight training for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. It reports to the JASDF Air Training Command, headquartered atHamamatsu Air Base.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
1 Joint civil-military use | |||||||||||||||||||
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